Interactive whiteboard opens Princetown Primary School’s eyes to the world

Interactive whiteboard opens Princetown Primary School’s eyes to the world

6th March 2017

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A brand new interactive whiteboard, donated to Princetown Primary School by the Dartmoor Classic cycle sportive, is set to open the eyes of pupils this year when it’s used for a series of live broadcasts with groups around the world.

Provided to the school as part of Dartmoor Classic’s commitment to engage with local communities and to support good causes, the whiteboard will be used, among other things, to bring the literary world into the classroom after the February half term.

Clare Luther, a London-based children’s author whose series of books, including The Safari and Okavango sets, have been illustrated by local artist Maria Floyd, will broadcast a live stream to talk to the children about her books. Written in humorous rhyme with a thoughtful moral and factual content, Clare’s books, are both fun and thought provoking.

Pupils will have the opportunity to talk to Maria and Clare about the books, their characters and the language of mindfulness. They’ll have the opportunity to write their own stories using mindfulness as a theme and they’ll even be treated to a chapter of the book read live from London by Clare herself.

Later this year a more adventurous theme will take centre stage when the interactive whiteboard is used to stream the world of search and rescue on Dartmoor into the classroom. Plans are already in place for an event that will involve the whole school in a live interactive feed between a group based in the school and a group out on the moor working with Dartmoor Search and Rescue Plymouth.

School children on the moor will trek up a local tor and enact a rescue mission, learning about the essential role that forward planning plays alongside communication and navigation. The children will learn about the history of the location, its landscape, geography and the importance of community in the context of rescue on Dartmoor.

The event will be streamed live from Dartmoor Search and Rescue Plymouth’s control vehicle back into the school where school pupils can gain an insight into the work of the team who are on standby 24 hours a day, ready to help those that get into difficulties on Dartmoor.

Due to take place at the end June or in early July, the broadcast has been arranged in celebration of Dartmoor Search and Rescue Plymouth’s relationship with the school, which stretches back more than 40 years. Over this period the school’s facilities have been used as a crucial part of the search and rescue team’s resources in support the annual Dartmoor Ten Tours event.

Other plans already in place include an ambitious live feed with ‘Everest 8,848’, a group trekking to the summit of Everest in 2018. Live broadcasts will bring the children face to face with the team as they take on one of the toughest challenges known to man.

Commenting on Princetown Primary’s plans for the whiteboard Phil Whittley, Executive Head of the school, said: “The new interactive whiteboard gives us the opportunity to connect with the outside world, taking our children to places that we wouldn’t be able visit as a school.

“Now, for the first time, we can connect with the cultural capital instantly and become involved with events globally, participating in live theatre, workshops, and interactive classes. We see this as an invaluable tool for a remote school such as Princetown Primary; one that will enrich our lessons, spark the imagination of young minds and allow our children to meet and talk to people with fascinating and inspirational stories around the world.”

Phil added: “The Dartmoor Classic team has given us the opportunity to make a huge difference to the education of our 5-11 year olds. As soon as they heard about our plans for the interactive whiteboard they not only provided a donation, but agreed to pay for the full cost of the £2,500 whiteboard itself, allowing us to install it into our classroom sooner than expected.”

Guy Langworthy, Chairman of the Dartmoor Classic, who officially unveiled the whiteboard to students at Princetown Primary, commented: “Last year Princetown Primary School became the official “feed station” for The Dartmoor Classic. Many of the schoolchildren were actively involved and so we wanted to give something meaningful back to them. As soon as Phil told us about how the interactive whiteboard could make a difference to the school, we decided there and then to double our donation, enabling the school to purchase the whiteboard outright.”

In 2015 the Dartmoor Classic donated almost £9,000 to local organisations including Dartmoor Forest Parish Council, Manaton Parish Council, Dartmoor Search and Rescue and Dartmoor National Park Authority. In 2016 this figure rose to over £15,000. Since its inception over ten years ago the event and its participants have helped raise over £150,000 for good causes.

Any surplus made from Dartmoor Classic registration fees, sponsorships and purchase of merchandise is shared between local charities and Mid Devon Cycling Club, which uses funds to support coaching and development of young and aspiring riders.

Marshalled by over 120 volunteers and organised by the Mid-Devon Cycling Club the Dartmoor Classic regularly receives accolades for both the professional nature of its management and for its commitment to assisting local causes and young riders.

This year the Dartmoor Classic will take place on Sunday 02 July. According to Visit South Devon, the one-day event regularly brings in over £500,000 in terms of visitor spend on accommodation, food and drink.